Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Andrew: Hello readers! So the last few days we've been sharing our predictions for who will be nominated in the acting categories, the directing category and the screenplay categories for this year's Academy Awards. Today we're going to discuss and share our guesses for which films (and how many) will be nominated in the big one - Best Picture. We will also be posting our picks for ALL the categories (except the short films) because that is what we need to do for the Oscar Nominations Predictions contest being held by Film Actually.
So, to preface our discussion of the Best Picture nominees, we're briefly going to remind you that the process for voting and determining Best Picture nominees changed last year. Remember in 2009 how the Academy changed the number of nominees from 5 to 10 in large part because Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight didn't get nominated in 2008? Well after two years of having 10 nominees the Academy decided maybe they were watering down the category by letting in a set number of 10.
So last year they changed the process to where there can be anywhere between 5 and 10 nominees in the Best Picture category, but now to get nominated your film MUST receive a minimum of 5% of all first-place votes. That's why last year there were 9 nominees - there weren't that many movies that EVERYONE loved, so a larger amount of films got first-place votes. Could that happen again this year? What do you think, Sarah?Sarah: I do think that this will be the case this year. While there were some great movies in the theatres this year, there were only 9 that we could see that deserve to be in the running for Best Picture.

The first one that we have on our list is Argo. Argo rocked. There's just no way around it. There was action and suspense to a movie that could have easily been extremely boring and dated. Between the acting, directing and script I think that this one will be a sure thing. I might even go as far as to say this one could be the winner. (Our review of Argo)

A: One of the movies that will give Argo a run for its money is going to be Zero Dark Thirty. Another tense, wonderfully acted movie with a strong script and it looks great. Once this one came out it quickly jumped to the front of the pack. (Our review of Zero Dark Thirty)

S:Lincoln will be another one that has made a lot of commotion this year and will most certainly have a spot in the top. While this wasn't one of our favorites this year, we can still see where this one caught all the attention of the critics. This movie has pedigree in Hollywood. (Our review of Lincoln)

A: Another film that has a pretty good pedigree behind it, and one led by some top-notch performances that I think will carry it to a Best Picture nom, is Silver Linings Playbook. It's funny, it's quirky, it has a golden cast and David O. Russell behind the camera. I'd be very surprised if this isn't one of the nominees. (Our review of Silver Linings Playbook)

S:Les Miserables was one that has gotten some mixed reviews over the past couple of weeks. While I loved it, some people had problems with the live singing aspect to the whole thing. I still think that it was an ingenious way to do things and for that alone I think it will be a Best Picture nominee. (Our review of Les Miserables)

A: Speaking of genius, this next one might be a bit of a question mark because of its content, but I have to believe that Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained will get a Best Picture nom. It's fantastic all around, led by great performances by Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio and Samuel L. Jackson. Tarantino's script is one of his sharpest and funniest, but the content might rub some people the wrong way. Still, I think this gets in based on its many merits. (Our review of Django Unchained)

S:Moonrise Kingdom was one that came out and was a little below the radar but as soon as people heard more about how good it was a hit. It's phenomenal cast mixed with strange humor was a delightful change of pace. If you haven't had a change to see this one yet, do it! Especially if it nabs a spot with the other Best Picture nominees. (Our review of Moonrise Kingdom)

A: I know we're already over the 5 nominee mark, which might surprise some, but I think my next prediction will surprise some people even more. I wholeheartedly believe the Skyfall will be the first James Bond film to get nominated for Best Picture. The entire idea of expanding the nominees was to get movies like this in the Best Picture race. Skyfall has it all - a great cast, an Oscar-winning Director in Sam Mendes (American Beauty), a 9-time Oscar nominated cinematographer in Roger Deakins, it has arguably my favorite score of the year...it's just exactly what the general public and, I bet, a large number of Academy voters would vote for. (Our review of Skyfall)

S: Last but not least we have Life of Pi by Ang Lee. This two hour movie was a visual masterpiece. And while I was not a big fan, it is extremely impressive that they were able to bring this to the big screen since it really is a movie starring one person and a tiger who decidedly does not talk throughout the whole thing. (Our review of Life of Pi)

So there you have it. Our list for the big one! It's been a great year in the movies and if any of these movies come near you get out and see them!

A:And if you so choose, listed below the photo are all of our predictions for every single Oscar category except for the short film ones (because no one sees those except the voters anyway, amiright?)